IELTS essay skills – Writing about IELTS Social Trends In the world of IELTS we often discuss “types” of essay (Discuss Both Sides, Advantages and Disadvantages, etc) and common topics (environment, work, education, etc), but we rarely talk about common “themes”. Today I want to talk about one theme that often appears but is rarely discussed: essays that focus on social change. These are essay questions which present a current social trend (the increase in crime, the loss of community, etc) and then ask you to examine it in some way. Today, Nick and I explain how to recognise IELTS social trend questions and how you should approach them to make sure that your writing is 100% on-topic.